Women still playing catch-up in sports

iTHINK

I can't count the number of hours I've spent on my driveway, basketball in hand, rhythmic thud cutting through silence with every bounce against the pavement. The noise of my practice is faithfully echoed by that of my neighbor and fellow basketball player working on his moves just two driveways over. We both constantly desire to improve: playing off-season, running, weight training, staying up late to watch as many college games as possible — whatever it takes. The only difference athletically between my neighbor and me is our gender: He's a boy and I'm a girl.

While women's sports have made tremendous headway in the last 50 years, the athletic world as a whole is still largely male-dominated. Flip on ESPN: Football, ice hockey highlights, baseball games, men's college basketball and NBA basketball dominate. Open a newspaper's sports section: The front is often a male sport photo and headline. Even come to my high school for a Friday night boys basketball game — gym packed, DJ blasting music, TV crew set up and student section chanting.

I get it. Boys are faster, stronger, taller and naturally more athletic than girls in general. But at the same time, that doesn't justify shortchanging girls teams. I know from personal experience that female athletes invest too much blood, sweat and tears — literally — to not get the recognition we deserve.

Gender bias in sports is prominent at all levels, from high school to professional, and society is to blame. Advertising, broadcasting and print media have laid this foundation over many years, creating a seemingly endless uphill battle for female athletes. Advertisers push the gender bias by prominently backing men's sports, in both commercials and product names. Big brands scour for the most popular male athletes to endorse them. Look up a list of the top 10 Nike endorsers of all time: Every one of them is male. But advertisers cannot be entirely to blame because they advertise what's popular.

Unfortunately, popularity is sparked by media. Media hugely contribute to the creation of fan bases. Newspapers and magazines like Sports Illustrated glamorize male athletes into icons. Television isn't any better. Hype exists for male sports that can't be matched by female counterparts. The Final Four and NCAA men's college basketball championship are discussed and promoted on SportsCenter long before March Madness. And half the country sits down to watch the Super Bowl.

Efforts have been made to level the playing field. Nearly 40 years ago, Title IX was passed to guarantee equal opportunities for women in high school and college sports. Despite this, professional female athletes are still far from equal. Not only are male pro athletes credited more, but they're also paid more. Forbes recently released its list of highest paid athletes globally; a woman has yet to reach the top 20. In fact, the highest paid female athlete ever, Maria Sharapova, has only reached number 26, behind 25 male athletes. Additionally, only two women made the top 100.

No matter what level, no matter where in the country, no matter which sport, gender bias is inarguably present in the athletic world. The only way this will ever change is by first changing the perception of female athletes in our society. The past practices of our culture ingrained in our minds that "girls should play nice." Girls are treated as fragile, breakable creatures in need of protection, instead of as respectable, legitimate athletes who can fend for themselves and then some. The moment we step out onto the court or field, we should no longer be thought of as "young ladies" but rather just athletes. Plain and simple. The less we are classified by our gender, the more respect we will gain.

Eventually, female athletes should not have to feel left out and in the dark. We put in the same amount of work but never get the same amount of recognition. While women may have been given the right to vote, only all men are created equal — at least for now in the world of sports.

Carly Muller is a senior at Emmaus High School, where she is a member of the basketball and track teams.